After
by heyits.reagan
Summary: You think saving the world is easy? There's a price all heroes must pay, and it's all in what happens after the battle is won.
1. Ryan & Spyder

Until I can watch the new episodes online, you guys are stuck with ideas from last season. No biggie though! I rewatched the season 1 finale and thought up this little fic. It's what happened after the fight, everything they didn't show on camera. I couldn't find anything significant that happened to Mark (correct me if I'm wrong), which is why there won't be a chapter dedicated to him. Anyways, please leave a review and hope you enjoy :)

* * *

"Hey, you need to find a ride home after school," Mark told his brother as he fixed himself a bowl of cereal. Ryan sat at the bar with a plate of waffles in front of him.

He frowned. "What?"

Mark shrugged. "Basketball practice, dude."

Ryan squinted at his brother. "Can you repeat that?" He had only heard half of what Mark just said. The older brother looked over his shoulder, ready to tell Ryan to shut up when he realized the kid wasn't joking. Ryan looked genuinely confused.

"I said you need to find a ride home after school," Mark repeated slowly and louder.

"Oh, okay."

"Are you feeling okay?"

"Are you asking if I'm actually sick or if I'm okay from the fight with Harper?" Ryan shot him a flat look. "Because you've asked me that like sixteen times." It had been a week since they'd defeated Harper. In that time, Mark bombarded Ryan with repetitive questions that never really got answered.

"No really, are you okay?"

Ryan was taken back by how concerned Mark sounded. Ryan raised an eyebrow and said, "Um yeah, totally. Why?"

Mark shook his head. "No reason. Be ready in ten." He headed back upstairs, leaving behind a bowl filled halfway with Fruit Loops and a very confused little brother.

•••••

Harris didn't mention it, but there was something definitely weird about his best friends.

They had to talk loudly as they walked through the halls or sat next to each other in class, disturbing the rest of their peers. Harris had to repeat himself a good three or four times before they finally understood. It had been like this ever since they defeated Harper.

Harris never wanted to bring it up because they acted fine overall. They were still the same best friends he'd grown up with, but a few things were different. Ryan and Spyder hadn't spoken about what happened at the robot while Harris and Mark were saving Grace. Harris worried something bad occurred that might've messed up their hearing.

They wouldn't talk, though. That was what had Harris the most concerned was the fact that his friends wouldn't talk to him about whatever it was. Harris was stuck between interrogating them and letting them tell him on their own.

Either way, he knew it wouldn't be good.

•••••

Sixth period was gym class for Spyder and Ryan, but the teacher had a family emergency and the class was left with a free day. Most students walked around the track while some played touch football on the field. Ryan and Spyder sat in the bleachers, playing on their phones.

"So, are we gonna talk about the fact that our hearing's kinda shot?" Ryan asked, leaning against the row behind him and crossing his arms over his chest.

Spyder shrugged. "What's to talk about? We know what happened."

"Harris and Mark don't."

"Yeah. We should tell them, right?"

Ryan pursed his lips. "I dunno. We almost _died_."

"We almost died a lot that day."

"I think I can hear better but there's still a ringing. Do you hear a ringing?"

Spyder nodded. "Right after the explosion it was super loud. Now, it's like an annoying buzz that won't go away."

"Exactly!"

"I think we should tell them."

Ryan stared at his shoes. "Yeah, I think you're right." They sighed. That conversation with the rest of their team would be soon and when it did happen, Spyder and Ryan knew it'd be anything but easy.


	2. Spyder

" **Leo!"**

Spyder couldn't stop thinking about it. The plasma ball sitting at the front of the room didn't help much either. Little rods of lightning danced inside the ball, much like the globes inside of Mech-X4's core. He stared at the plasma ball, dozens of flashbacks racing through his mind.

 **"** **I have no idea what that energy discharge is going to do to a human being."**

Kill. It was going to kill him. Spyder's still not sure how Leo lived through that.

Ryan and Harris exchanged confused looks; they'd never seen Spyder so spaced out (and that was saying something).

Their science teacher was explaining something about electricity and metal. Spyder couldn't really hear her. Ryan and Harris weren't paying attention that well, either.

"What's wrong with him?" Harris asked Ryan, who watched the plasma ball curiously.

"I have no idea," Ryan shrugged.

There was a hum and a zap and the class gasped. The teacher explained what effect the metal had with electricity. Spyder flinched and put his head down, covering his ears and burying his face into his arms in hopes of blocking everything else out.

He watched somebody get fried right in front of his eyes. A friend, which made it even worse. Leo dropped to the ground like a deadweight and smoke filled the room. The only sound was the soft hum of power.

Ryan eyed his classmates wearily. Some shot irritated looks at Spyder while others whispered and laughed. Ryan wanted to yell at them. What right did these kids have, judging Spyder like that? It was only the fourth day at the new school. Ryan despised nearly everybody in the classroom.

Harris wondered if Spyder's actions had anything to do with the robot or the fight with Harper. He knew they were all still trying to recover from it, though Spyder hadn't mentioned anything bad from what he could recall (besides of course whatever weakened his hearing).

Spyder peeked at Harris, who sat beside him. He was really bad at keeping things to himself, which is why he visits a therapist once a week. Spyder needed to talk to his friends about what he was going through. He kinda figured they needed to talk to him, too. His therapist says keeping your feelings bottled up will only have negative results.

Soon, he decided. They would talk soon.

Ryan sat behind Harris. They both caught Spyder's side glance and narrowed eyes. In that moment, they all unknowingly agreed to talk to each other because despite what they may have told themselves every morning, they needed each other. Now, more than ever.


	3. Ryan

Having nightmares was not a foreign concept to Ryan. He'd been experiencing them since the first monster attack way back when. They weren't severe, only occurring once or twice every few weeks. That was easy; he could handle that.

The night after defeating Harper, he woke in a cold sweat. His nightmare was already forgotten except for an echoing BOOM and Harper's taunting grin.

Ryan didn't go back to sleep that night.

He didn't go back to sleep most nights and eventually got into a routine of sleeping two or three hours every night. There were bags under his eyes. He kind of dragged his feet when he walked. He could hardly stay awake in class.

Grace blamed it on his electronics. "I'm confiscating your phone and laptop every night at ten," she decided one afternoon. She had received a call at work from the vice principal that Ryan had fallen asleep in every one of his classes. Ryan had no choice but to agree because it was a lot easier than facing the truth. It didn't work of course, but it was the thought that counted.

Mark knew it was something more than that. He tried talking his brother into opening up, but he kept receiving the same responses: _"I'm fine." "It's no big deal." "Dude, stop, you're starting to sound like mom."_ So, Mark decided to give Ryan the benefit of the doubt. They were all starting school soon, maybe Ryan was just nervous about that.

The weekend before the first day at East Bay High, Ryan and his friends slept at his house. Mark was grounded on Friday for sneaking out to go to a party, so he was on house arrest with no phone or friends for a week. He was also supposed to be in charge because Grace was out with friends for the night, but he locked himself in his room with his stereo to drown out his sorrows.

Ryan, Harris, and Spyder sat on the couch playing an intense game of Mario Kart. Harris had fallen behind early in the race, but Spyder and Ryan were battling to see who would take the winning title.

"Harris, you suck at this game," Spyder admitted and Ryan snickered.

"Yeah, well, you guys are cheaters," he grumbled.

"Wha, how?" Ryan demanded.

Spyder smirked. "Don't hate the players, hate the game." His character raced over the finish line just moments before Ryan's. He dropped his controller to the table and waved his hands in front of his face. "Aw yeah! Beat that, Ry!"

"I let you win," Ryan declared, laying his controller on the coffee table and jumping to his feet.

"Yeah sure, whatever will help you sleep at night." Ryan laughed at the irony as he walked to his kitchen. The drowsiness hit him hard and he stumbled. He caught himself on the dining table for support. Ryan felt really dizzy and the room was spinning. As he began to search for ibuprofen, Mark came downstairs.

"I can't believe Mom actually let them come over," he began, meeting Ryan in the kitchen. Spyder and Harris abandoned their game and joined the two.

"Why wouldn't she?" Ryan asked, pouring out two pills. Then, he grabbed a cup from one of the cabinets.

"Because you're grounded." Mark stepped out of the way so Ryan could reach the fridge.

"I'm not grounded from friends unlike _you_." Mark glared and Ryan smirked. "I'm not even grounded, really."

"What's that mean?" Harris asked.

Ryan sighed. He grabbed the water pitcher and filled his cup halfway. "My mom started taking my phone and my computer every night at ten. She thinks it'll help me sort out my sleep schedule or something."

Mark watched Ryan take the pills. "What's that?" he demanded. Ryan shot him an irritated look.

"Ibuprofen. Get off my case, would you?"

Spyder and Harris exchanged looks. Mark rolled his eyes. "I'm just wondering why you're suddenly having trouble sleeping."

"We haven't been in school for two weeks so of course I've been staying up later. Spyder, back me up here."

Spyder's eyes widened. "Um, yeah, same. I've been staying up til four every night."

Harris sighed. " _This_ is why I can never talk to either of you before noon."

Ryan met Mark's eyes. "I told you bro, _I'm fine_."

Mark grit his teeth and rolled his eyes. He shoved past his brother and grabbed a half empty bag of chips. Sometimes, Ryan was too stubborn for his own good. Mark hated that about him.

As the older brother headed back upstairs, he shot Harris and Spyder a look that neither really understood. It was like concern and anger rolled into one. Maybe that was Mark's way of saying "Keep an eye on him." At least, that's what Harris guessed and responded to the look with a firm nod.

"So," Ryan said, sitting his empty glass in the sink, "round two?"

•••••

Ryan fell asleep first. He had laid down between the second and the third round and eventually fell asleep, granting Harris a one time opportunity to beat Ryan at Mario Kart.

" _Harris_!"

"Haha! Eat blue shell, sucker!"

Just as Harris was about to cross the finish line, there was a power surge. The TV screen glitched, then went black. The kitchen lights flickered on, then back off. The entire floor looked like some kind of light show gone wrong.

Everything stopped when Ryan jerked away, gripping the blanket on the back of the couch tightly and nearly kicking Spyder at the other end of the couch. Spyder leaned away and caught Ryan's ankles.

"Ryan?" Harris asked carefully.

"What happened?" Ryan mumbled. Spyder slowly released him and Ryan pushed himself against the arm of the couch.

"Either the universe was telling Harris that he should never win in Mario Kart or your powers just went all wonky," Spyder explained. Ryan looked at the blank TV and rubbed his eyes.

"It seemed like you were having a nightmare," Harris observed. "D'ya wanna talk about it?" Ryan didn't look at either of them. He pulled the blanket off the couch and wrapped it around himself. He felt his friends' eyes on him the whole time.

"Do you guys ever dream about the monsters?"

Spyder laid his controller on the coffee table; he had a feeling they were done with video games for the night.

"I have," Harris admitted. He crossed his legs and wrapped his arms around his chest. "The one that almost killed me and turned me into an ooze zombie the first time? Yeah, I kinda see it a lot."

Spyder frowned. "First time?"

"You've been an ooze zombie more than once?" Ryan added, eyebrows furrowing with confusion.

Harris pursed his lips. "Yep, but you guys wouldn't know that because you're refusing to talk about what happened the day we defeated Harper."

Ryan and Spyder exchanged looks. Harris glared. "See? _That's_ what I mean! Those stupid looks you guys give each other make me feel like I'm left out of something big. Why can't you just _tell me_?"

"I haven't been sleeping 'cause of nightmares," Ryan explained quietly, avoiding Harris's question. "I can't stop thinking about the missiles, the freaking missiles…"

"Don't think I didn't catch you ignoring my question," Harris snapped. "What missiles?"

Again, another knowing, worried look was exchanged between his best friends and Harris was really getting sick of it.

"You know what? _Fine_. Keep your secrets, whatever. I'm trying to _help_ you guys, but I can't do anything if you won't tell me." He jumped to his feet and stormed toward the door, but stopped when he peeked out the window. "And if it wasn't so late, I'd storm home. So just, don't talk to me."

He walked upstairs to Ryan's room where his bag was located. He had intended to grab his earbuds and block them out, but decided to just stay upstairs away from them.

Mark was just walking out of the bathroom when Harris reached Ryan's room. The jock asked, "Why do you look so mad?"

Harris grit his teeth. "Because you were _right_. Ryan's hiding something and so is Spyder and they won't _talk_."

"I'm pretty sure I can make them talk."

"No," Harris sighed, rubbing his temple, "don't force them to do anything they don't want to. They'll tell us when they're ready… _Maybe_."

There was a hesitant call from downstairs. Ryan called for Harris, then Mark a moment later. Spyder watched Ryan carefully, wondering what his friend was going to say. Was he going to explain why their hearing is so bad? Or was he going to confess to having nightmares?

"We need to talk," Ryan stated when Mark and Harris came downstairs. Ryan had turned the living room light on, so Harris noticed their anxious faces immediately.

Mark huffed. "Damn right we do." He glanced at the three and mumbled as an afterthought, "Sorry."

Ryan took a deep breath. "I can't keep this a secret any longer because it's actually killing me. Spyder and I lost our hearing from a missile the military sent."

"A missile?" Harris repeated. "You had to have been really close for a missile's explosion to mess with your hearing."

"Yeah," Spyder breathed, staring at the coffee table blankly.

"After you guys left, we went to the lounge to see what the damage was. A missile hit and pierced the hole, but didn't go off. We had to pull it out of the wall and get it outside."

Harris's throat was dry. He opened and closed his mouth a few times, trying and failing not to imagine the situation. A _missile_. They had to carry a _live missile_.

"It, uh, was really heavy and we dropped it," Spyder continued, glancing at Ryan.

"Oh my God," Mark whispered, dragging a hand across his face.

"We got it outside just in time." Ryan frowned. "I didn't get physically hurt. Spyder?"

"Nah."

" _But_ the explosion knocked out the robot's power. We didn't have cover or defensive or any way of getting back to the bunker."

"What'd you do?" Harris asked, but he almost didn't want to know the answer.

"Leo and I went to the core to try and fix it," Spyder answered, playing on his phone. He jumped from one app to another, trying to distract himself.

Ryan swallowed. "And I had to climb to the top of the robot and protect it because we were like sitting ducks out there."

"That's insane!" Mark shouted, outraged. Surely Leo could've come up with a better idea than to send a _fourteen year old_ as the only line of defense?!

"We didn't have a _choice_ ," Ryan stressed. "I had to buy them time to fix the core. Besides, the military's missiles weren't the problem. The problem was Harper's."

" _Harper's_?" Harris repeated sharply.

"It had to have been his. It was different than the others and I couldn't stop it. If Leo hadn't gotten the power back on…"

He didn't finish and the possibility hung in the air. The tension was thick. Ryan couldn't breathe, but he felt as though a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Quietly, he said, "I'm sorry we kept it from you guys."

Mark didn't say a word. Instead, he stormed forward and pulled his little brother into a tight hug. Ryan gasped and winced as his joints popped beneath Mark's embrace. Still, he managed to hug back and bury his face into his brother's shoulder.

"Just as long as you're okay," Mark mumbled, patting Ryan's back.

Spyder watched the exchange absently. He was having an internal argument, trying to decide if he should talk about his traumatizing experience, but he realized he couldn't. He had tried to bring it up to his own reflection once, but the words wouldn't roll off his tongue. He could _not_ talk about the almost-death of Leo Mendel. It wasn't possible.

A lot happened that day on both sides of the team. There was still a lot to be confessed and talked about. Harris apparently turned into an ooze monster again. Spyder was afraid of science class. Ryan couldn't sleep for more than four hours at a time.

There was more damage than what the surface showed. Ryan knew that he and his team wouldn't be the same again. Still though, his chest would feel a little lighter knowing he wasn't keeping secrets. Now, the only thing he had to worry about was the secrets they were keeping from _him_.

And, well, that was for another chapter.


	4. Harris

Sorry if this is confusing! Everything will be explained in the next (last) chapter. Also, sorry if I described an infected burn incorrectly. I tried googling what it looks like, but the only results were **_extremely_** worst case scenarios. I don't recommend the search because it's really, really bad. Anyways! Leave a review & enjoy :3

* * *

The new school was really dumb.

At Bay City, you were shoved around in the halls by accident (usually). Here though, the East Bay kids went out of their way to elbow you or knock your books out of your hands. Harris really hated it.

Just a moment ago, a junior shoved through the halls angrily as he tried to get to his next class. Harris had been in his line of fire and received a jab directly to his shoulder. Spyder and Ryan were a few steps behind, glaring at the jerk who had just shoved their friend.

"Jeez, why's everyone so rough here?" Ryan complained. "You okay, bro?"

 _Not really_. Harris pressed a hand to his shoulder. "Um…" He sucked in a breath of air. He had an injury on his shoulder and good gosh it _burned_. Harris's face twisted in agony as he took slow, deep breaths.

"Yep, I'm great!" Harris shot them a reassuring smile over his shoulder. Ryan and Spyder exchanged suspicious looks.

Harris rushed into the bathroom, sighing at the silence. He stood in front of the mirror and carefully pulled hi shirt collar beneath his shoulder wound.

He had two all together, one on his abdomen and one on his shoulder. They certainly looked better than a few days earlier, but the burns were still blistering over and irritated. Harris winced; it looked pretty gross.

"Har-" Harris met Ryan's eyes in the mirror. Spyder stepped into view as the door slammed shut behind them. Their eyes widened.

"That looks sick, dude!" Spyder cried. He was both disgusted and intrigued. He and Ryan stared at the injury, unable to tear their eyes away.

"So…" Harris let go of his shirt and turned toward them. "Turns out you guys weren't the only ones hiding something…"

Spyder pointed accusingly at Harris. "Hypocrite!"

Ryan shoved his arm down. "What happened?"

"It's an electrical burn."

"From what?"

Harris looked around. "I don't really want to talk about this in the bathroom."

Ryan nodded slowly. "Fair enough. You should go see the nurse, though."

"And say what?" Harris pinched the bridge of his nose. "Never mind, I'll be fine." He grabbed his bag and quickly exited the bathroom. Spyder tsked with disbelief. Ryan squatted and ducked his head to check under the stalls.

"So he bugs us," Spyder began, "about keeping secrets when he was keeping one himself?"

"You're right. He should've said something was wrong, but we should've told him too. Easy solution: We're meeting at the robot after school to talk about everything."

Spyder shook his head. "Easier solution: We never talk about that freaking day ever again."

"Spyder-"

"No Ry, I can't even admit it to my own _reflection_ ," he waved his hand at the mirror, "never mind you two. I'm not talking about _anything_."

"Fine, fine," Ryan dragged a hand down his face, "but you still need to be there. I wanna forget this just as much as you do, but Harris needs us."

Spyder sighed. "Okay, whatever."

•••••

Harris kept to himself the rest of the day. Ryan told him to meet at the robot after school and that was their final exchange until the last bell rang. His last two classes were spent away from his friends anyways, leaving Harris to his thoughts. He knew he should tell his friends everything, but he really didn't want to. Harris knew what was there and he knew how bad it looked.

And man, did it look _bad_.

A few days following the attack, he never looked at himself in the mirror. He couldn't bring himself to see what the damage was. Those burns were a constant reminder of _yes, someone really did want to kill you. Yes, the world really did almost end._

Harris had hoped that the positive outcome and the world being safe would outweigh all the negativity that came with it. Unfortunately, he was proved wrong a few days ago when he awoke to infection and pain.

Even if he had wanted to tell somebody or seek help, he couldn't. How was he supposed to explain to his mom what had happened? How could he have beat around the bush enough to receive help from a doctor who wouldn't call the police? Harris had been doing the best he could with what information he could find online, but he knew he'd have to see a doctor eventually. The idea scared him, though.

What if in the end, scars replaced the wounds? That was one of his biggest worries. He'd never be able to swim without a shirt. He'd never be able to change in front of anyone. Eventually, his mom would find out (because moms have that weird ability to know things). What then? He didn't want to imagine her reaction.

Harris would never be able to look at himself again. He could hardly stand to watch as he treated the burns, but scars? Constant reminders of that day and what happened? No way, he couldn't bare it.

The final bell rang, startling him from his thoughts. The classroom emptied quickly, everybody eager to go home. Harris gathered his things and walked a snail's pace to his locker, trying to waste as much time as he could. He knew it didn't matter because Spyder and Ryan would wait for him all night if they had to.

Harris took a deep breath. He was going to tell them the truth, ready or not.

* * *

ignore: just trying to get to 1,000 words.


	5. Confession

Spyder rubbed his sweaty palms against his pants.

Ryan knew the very basics of what happened. Leo fixed the core, got the power back on, but was electrocuted to the point of passing out. That was the easy version that was fixed when Leo woke up. Spyder didn't tell Ryan anything else because there were bigger fish to fry.

His therapist always said bottling up your emotions was dangerous. Spyder usually rolled his eyes and questioned for the umpteenth time why he was forced to go there. In that moment though, as he and his friends sat around the robot's lounge and waited for somebody to speak, he realized that his therapist may not have been all that crazy.

Spyder wanted to tell them. He _needed_ to tell them. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw sparks. The moment replayed through his head like a broken record and his heart ached every time he saw it. Keeping it to himself was maddening, but speaking it aloud seemed impossible.

"Harris, you first," Ryan said, leaning forward on his knees. He sat next to a slouching Spyder on the couch while Harris stood in front of them.

Spyder crossed his arms over his chest and kicked his feet up on the table. Harris made a face.

"Why do I have to go first?" he whined.

"Because I already went," Ryan explained.

"And because you can't get out of it, so you might as well."

" _You_ can't get out of it, either."

Spyder groaned. "Just _go_ already, jeez!"

Ryan rolled his eyes. "Spyder, chill out."

Harris glared and Spyder returned it with a shrug. Ryan shook his head as he looked between the two before focusing on Harris.

"Fine, okay, so Mark and I were at Harper's…" Harris began telling his and Mark's story. Spyder listened halfheartedly, trying to make a decision. To tell or not to tell? Obviously, he wanted to tell. He wanted to share the burden so maybe, maybe it wouldn't keep him up at night.

"… I was attacked here," Harris pointed to his shoulder, "and here." Spyder blinked and looked back at Harris. He sat up a little straighter as Harris lifted his shirt carefully and pointed at the second wound. Ryan felt sick. Spyder cringed. Harris tried not to pay attention to their reactions.

"They're infected," Harris explained. "That was my fault. I stupidly thought they'd heal on their own."

Ryan shook his head. "It's not your fault."

Harris didn't believe him, but he didn't argue. "I'm gonna need medical attention eventually, but I don't know how to get it. How am I supposed to explain what happened when I don't know myself?"

"Maybe Leo knows somebody who will keep the secret," Ryan suggested.

"Maybe." Harris tapped his fingers against his leg. Spyder and Ryan watched, waiting for him to speak again. They'd known Harris long enough to know when the boy was anxious about something. "I'm scared these are going to leave scars."

"I don't think burns scar," Spyder said, though a bit uncertainly.

"What if they do, though? I don't know if I can deal with that." He took a deep breath. "What if my mom finds out? How am I going to explain it to her?"

"She won't find out," Ryan tried to reassure.

"You know moms have that weird power of always finding things out."

"I dunno, Mark still hasn't gotten caught for skipping school last year to go to a Lakers game three hours away."

"That is a _very_ rare occurrence, especially with your mom." Ryan snickered. "Remind me to ask Leo later about getting help."

Ryan nodded. "I will. You're gonna be fine, Harris."

Harris sniffed. He had to admit, he felt a little better than when he woke up that morning.

Spyder jumped to his feet. "Well, that was fun and all, but I'm gonna go take a nap." He walked around the couch and grabbed his bag from beside the door.

"Whoa, whoa, hold on!" Harris called. Spyder stopped in his tracks and cursed in his head. "You made me talk. Now, it's your turn."

With a sigh, Spyder spun back around. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Neither did I." Harris pointed at Ryan. "Neither did Ryan. We still did, though."

Spyder clenched his jaw. "Mine's worse than yours."

"Spyder, c'mon. You'll feel better if you talk about it," Ryan swore, offering a smile.

"Don't start with that crap, okay? I see a therapist once a week, so I know how great it is to get things off your chest. This isn't the same thing. I _can't_ talk about this."

"Why?" Harris asked.

"Because if I say it out loud, that makes it real." Spyder grit his teeth. "It means that I actually saw a friend…" He shook his head, closed his eyes. His heart pounded in his ears.

When Spyder looked at them, Ryan and Harris froze. They were floored by his eyes which had glazed over with tears. They'd never seen him in this state, not even when Spyder broke his leg. He had always been the stronger one of the three, cracking jokes through hard times instead of breaking down when the latter was so tempting. He was the one to cheer them up when they needed it.

Spyder wasn't supposed to be the one so close to tears, but he was _breaking_.

"Leo and I went to the core to try and turn the power back on. He knew what would happen if he tried to connect those energy orb things, but he did it anyways. He tricked me so I wouldn't stop him from going, and by the time I realized what he'd done, the door was locked behind him. There was an explosion and I…" He shook his head, took a deep breath. "I. Watched. Leo. Die." He spoke each word slowly and forcefully.

Harris and Ryan frowned, confused. Harris said, "What are you talking about? Leo's fine."

"I know that _now_ ," Spyder hissed, "but I watched him fall like a sack of potatoes. He didn't get back up. He didn't move. I don't know how long I watched him, waiting for him to breathe again. It felt like an eternity. The hallway I was in was way too quiet, so I called you. I figured you'd be a few minutes and I hoped Leo would wake back up in that time."  
"Spyder…" Ryan said.

"He locked me out so I couldn't get in. All I could do was bang on that stupid door and yell at him. He finally woke up and we were back in action, but I have dreams that he doesn't live because he shouldn't have lived through that. I don't know how much electricity a human can take before they die, but that had to have been at the limit."

Harris didn't know what to say, what to do. He hadn't been expecting something like this. He moved faster than he could register, wrapping his arms around Spyder and pulling him into a tight hug.

Spyder stood frozen for a moment, trying to calm down. He'd never cried in front of his friends or his parents or _anyone_. He hated the thought of it. But he just stood there, fingers trembling as he recalled that horrific moment and for a second, he thought he was alone in his room, finally admitting it all to his reflection.

Then, Harris _hugged_ him and he remembered that he wasn't alone at all. He was there and his friends were there and they were just as not okay as he was. Spyder returned the hug because he felt as though it was more than just for comfort. He figured that, after what they had just went through, maybe they all needed a hug.

"I'm sorry," Ryan said, his voice a little off. Spyder looked at him and shook his head. Harris pulled away and turned to face Ryan.

"Not your fault," Spyder reassured.

"No, it is. You guys don't have to be here. The only reason you are is because-"

"Because we _want_ to be," Harris cut him off. "We chose to be here."

"Yeah," Spyder agreed. "Don't start that again."

Ryan still looked unsure, so Spyder stepped over and grabbed his shoulder. "C'mon, group hug!" Spyder shouted, pulling his best friends toward him and wrapping his arms around their shoulders. Harris and Ryan snickered, but complied.

"Let's never speak of this again," Ryan said when they separated.

"You liked it," Spyder teased.

"Shut up."

Spyder laughed and his voice carried through the lounge. Ryan looked between his friends, a small smile creeping on his lips.

"From now on," he said, "we tell each other everything. Especially if it involves Mech-X4 because we only have each other." Spyder and Harris nodded in agreement.

"Okay, enough chick-flick moments. I say we play some video games and forget about everything that just happened. Yeah?!"

"Even the part you cried?" Harris teased.

"What part? I don't know what you're talking about. Video games!" Spyder hopped over the back of the couch and grabbed a controller. Harris looked at Ryan and rolled his eyes. Ryan snickered, slung an arm around Harris's shoulders, and joined Spyder on the couch.

They all felt at ease for the first time in weeks. Harris sat between the two, rolling his eyes at the competitiveness taking over his friends, but he couldn't help but laugh. For a moment, they really did forget everything that had happened recently and they were just content with being there.

The battle was far from over, they knew that much. More was heading their way and they were anything but prepared. However, no matter what happened in the future, they knew they had each other, and that was all they really needed.


End file.
